Grade bands: 6-8

The solar system is part of the Milky Way, which is one of many billions of galaxies.

The solar system contains many varied objects held together by gravity. Solar system models explain and predict eclipses, lunar phases, and seasons.

Develop and use a model of the Earth-sun-moon system to describe the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the sun and moon, and seasons.

Develop and use a model to describe the role of gravity in the motions within galaxies and the solar system.

Analyze and interpret data to determine scale properties of objects in the solar system.

Energy flows and matter cycles within and among Earth’s systems, including the sun and Earth’s interior as primary energy sources. Plate tectonics is one result of these processes.

Plate tectonics is the unifying theory that explains movements of rocks at Earth’s surface and geological history. Maps are used to display evidence of plate movement.

Water cycles among land, ocean, and atmosphere, and is propelled by sunlight and gravity. Density variations of sea water drive interconnected ocean currents. Water movement causes weathering and erosion, changing landscape features.

Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to provide evidence of the past plate motions.

Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth’s systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity.

Develop and use a model to describe how unequal heating and rotation of the Earth cause patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates.

4th Grade

4-PS3-2. Make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents.

SCI.PS3.D.4, 5 Plants capture energy from sunlight which can be used as fuel or food. Stored energy in food or fuel can be converted to useable energy.

SCI.ESS1.C.4 Certain features on Earth can be used to order events that have occurred in a landscape.

SCI.ESS2.A.4,5 Four major Earth systems interact. Rainfall helps to shape the land and affects the types of living things found in a region. Water, ice, wind, organisms, and gravity break rocks, soils, and sediments into smaller pieces and move them around.

SCI.ESS2.B.4 Earth’s physical features occur in patterns, as do earthquakes and volcanoes. Maps can be used to locate features and determine patterns in those events.

5th Grade

SCI.LS1.C.5 Food provides animals with the materials and energy they need for body repair, growth, warmth, and motion. Plants acquire material for growth chiefly from air, water, and process matter, and obtain energy from sunlight, which is used to maintain conditions necessary for survival.

SCI.LS2.A.5 The food of almost any animal can be traced back to plants. Organisms are related in food webs in which some animals eat plants for food and other animals eat the animals that eat plants, while decomposers restore some materials back to the soil.

SCI.PS2.B.5 The gravitational force of Earth acting on an object near Earth’s surface pulls that object toward the planet’s center.

SCI.PS3.D.4, 5 Plants capture energy from sunlight which can be used as fuel or food. Stored energy in food or fuel can be converted to useable energy.

SCI.ESS1.A.5 Stars range greatly in size and distance from Earth, and this can explain their relative brightness

SCI.ESS1.B.5 The Earth’s orbit and rotation, and the orbit of the moon around the Earth cause observable patterns.

SCI.ESS2.C.5 Most of Earth’s water is in the ocean, and much of the Earth’s freshwater is in glaciers or underground.

6th Grade

SCI.PS3.D.m Sunlight is captured by plants and used in a chemical reaction to produce sugar molecules for storing this energy. This stored energy can be released by respiration or combustion, which can be reversed by burning those molecules to release energy.

7th Grade

SCI.ESS1.A.m The solar system is part of the Milky Way, which is one of many billions of galaxies.

SCI.ESS1.B.m The solar system contains many varied objects held together by gravity. Solar system models explain and predict eclipses, lunar phases, and seasons.

SCI.ESS2.A.m Energy flows and matter cycles within and among Earth’s systems, including the sun and Earth’s interior as primary energy sources. Plate tectonics is one result of these processes.

SCI.ESS2.B.m Plate tectonics is the unifying theory that explains movements of rocks at Earth’s surface and geological history. Maps are used to display evidence of plate movement.

SCI.ESS2.C.m Water cycles among land, ocean, and atmosphere, and is propelled by sunlight and gravity. Density variations of sea water drive interconnected ocean currents. Water movement causes weathering and erosion, changing landscape features.

SCI.ESS2.D.m Complex interactions determine local weather patterns and influence climate, including the role of the ocean.

8th Grade

SCI.LS1.C.m Plants use the energy from light to make sugars through photosynthesis. Within individual organisms, food is broken down through a series of chemical reactions that rearrange molecules and release energy.

SCI.LS2.B.m The atoms that make up the organisms in an ecosystem are cycled repeatedly between the living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem. Food webs model how matter and energy are transferred among producers, consumers, and decomposers as the three groups interact within an ecosystem.